


Uh, nothing?

by NightshadeArabs



Category: The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-29 13:43:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19021123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightshadeArabs/pseuds/NightshadeArabs
Summary: I just want some peace and quiet. And pizza rolls.





	Uh, nothing?

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick bit of angst and fluff.

I put the plate in the microwave, shut the door and poked the buttons on autopilot. Today was just going to be one of those days. The kind where I didn’t sit down and eat, just munched. I didn’t feel like dealing with all the people that would flock to the break room at actual mealtimes. Instead the slow one or two meandering in and out, grabbing snacks, like I was, those were my people today. The hustle and bustle continued just beyond the break room door as everyone went about their day. There was always intel to be gathered and missions to run.  
I knew he was on base and I would bet a week of shit job postings that he knew I was here too. The odds of me being on a mission every time he got sent to this base had to fail eventually. Not that I figured he’d care, given how quickly he took off when I went down on that last mission together.  
‘Just fucking run dude. Clearly, you can’t handle actual field work, you were always much more suited to being behind a desk.’ This was a mental rant I had, more than I’d admit, since he left.  
I wouldn’t go so far as to call him a coward. What we do is dangerous. Someone with any sense had every right to run as fast as they could the other way. But we went through training together, we went through hell together and the missions weren’t about to get any safer with my skill set. I always assumed he knew that coming into it. Coulson had always complained that being behind a desk while others were in the line of fire was worse. Said he hated not being able to directly influence what happened on the ground during missions. I figured that it must have been the stability that he had wanted when he left, though I’m sure the better pay and faster advancement up the ranks didn’t hurt. Which I knew was happening. Sure, I still checked from time to time. Why wouldn’t I care about what happened to my old partner?  
The beep pulled me from my thoughts, and I pulled the plate out and wiggled it, then I put it back in. I was only half paying attention when I heard Coulson’s footsteps in the hall. Something tugged at the back of my mind about the second set walking with him, but I just busied myself lazily digging through the freezer to see if there was anything else I wanted. I faltered a bit when I heard that voice nearly right outside the door. Surely my luck couldn’t be that bad.

“I’m sure that’s where she is.” Damn you Coulson, you were gonna pay for this.  
“I don’t think she wants to see me” His voice slid down my spine like a cool drop of rain on a warm summer day. I shivered and adjusted myself on my crutches. ‘You’ve got once chance to save yourself here Phil’ I muttered.  
“Does it matter at this point?” Coulson replied simply. Oh man. I already started plotting my revenge as I opened the microwave as the door slowly opened.  
I heard the pause at the sight of my crutches. Guess Phil didn’t say I still needed them. I ignored him, though he knew me well enough to know as soon as he saw me without my headphones that I had heard them both outside.  
“Uh”  
“Something I can help you with Agent Ross?” I asked coolly, not even turning around yet  
Oh Everett Ross, how a man as smart as you could ever be at a loss for words amused me. I clamped my arm down over the top of my crutch to steady it and pulled the now very warm plate out the microwave and wiggled it again.  
“Pizza rolls?”   
“What does it look like?”  
“Shouldn’t you be eating real food?”  
I slowly turned around and skillfully crutched my way over to the table. I could tell you were fighting the urge to help me but were smart enough to not move from where you stood.  
“Like it matters to you?” I shot  
Everett winced and looked down.  
“What was so important that you came to find me?” I asked, trying to let the rolls cool enough to not burn the hell out of the roof of my mouth when I went to eat them  
Everett held up a brown folder. “Intel, your kind of intel” his eyes ran from my messy hair down to my superhero no slip socks. Sure, it wasn’t SHIELD approved and issue gear, but being on the busted list made me not care.  
I cocked an eyebrow at him, daring him to say something. I know he hadn’t seen me out of tactical gear in a long time. Even overnight missions found me in standard practical tights, just in case the shit hit the fan. Since that seemed to be the default setting with me around.  
“How are things?” Came his only reply  
“Oh, you mean, how am I doing after falling off a roof and having my partner run like there was a fire under his ass?” I leveled a pizza roll at him before tossing it in my mouth. Lava sauce be damned.  
Ross took a nearly imperceptible step back at my tone before opening his mouth again, “Yeah ok. I deserve that. I didn’t handle myself well.”  
I snorted. That might have been the understatement of the damn year.  
“Who takes off when someone on their team gets injured Ev?” I asked. He twitched at the name. “When I woke up you weren’t there. When they told me you’d requested a transfer pretty much as soon as I hit the ground, what the hell was I supposed to think?”  
Everett was a little pink now. “I don’t have an answer for you.”  
“Fine. Give me the damn folder then. Not sure what you expect since I only get rid of these stupid sticks at the end of the week, and won’t be cleared for duty for a while”  
Ross smartly just handed the file over.  
“It should have been me” He whispered to himself  
“Excuse me?” I’d heard him, but now he had my attention  
“It should have been me to hit the ground” Everett said louder this time.  
I put the file down. Was that why he ran? Because I had thrown myself down to save his ass? That was literally my job.   
“So, you’re telling me that you ran like a little bitch because I did exactly what I told you I’d do in that situation?” I stared at him pointedly “Everett it is literally my job to protect whoever I’m sent into the field with.”  
“But you’re the more valuable agent!”  
“Hold the fuck up” I said, standing up. Crutches be damned. “The intel you grab on missions saves millions, I’m a glorified bodyguard. You knew that going into this” I looked him in the eyes. “and don’t you pull Steve’s we don’t trade lives bullshit because you know he’d have done the same thing in my shoes.”  
“I know, but”  
“Dammit Ev, I did my job and I’m still here” I shouted exasperated, “Or is this because I’m fem and you’re a man? Don’t tell me you’re that fucking shallow.”  
I could damn near see the thoughts bouncing around in Everett’s head. There was no way that was it.   
“Oh hell” I muttered.  
Everett’s eyes snapped to mine.  
“It’s even stupider than that isn’t it” I said, much softer this time.  
“it’s because he’s heads over heels for you” Natasha quipped as the walked into the break room  
Everett turned bright red and looked at the floor.  
“Thanks Nat, cause that totally wasn’t the conclusion I just came to” I responded dryly and smirked at her  
“Glad I could help” she stole a pizza roll and flopped down on the couch behind me.  
I tucked the intel folder between my arm and my crutch and moved towards the door. I looked back over my shoulder at Everett, who was still standing right where he was, dumbfounded.  
“You coming, or what?”  
“Where?”  
“Conference room, since this intel isn’t going to figure itself out.”  
I paused  
“Then maybe on a date? If the crutches don’t put you off too much?”  
Everett gave me one of his award-winning smiles. “Sounds good to me”


End file.
